Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Trans Siberian Orchestra Rocks Holiday Opera Live

01/03/2013

Trans Siberian Orchestra Rocks Holiday Opera Live Posted: March 2013 | For Immediate Release

For the first time ever, Trans-Siberian Orchestra performed their acclaimed 2004 rock opera The Lost Christmas Eve live in its entirety. Written by founder Paul ONeill, it tells the uplifting story of redemption and salvation on an enchanting Christmas Eve in New York City. The orchestra takes listeners on a journey deep into their imaginations, from a run-down hotel, to an old toy store, a blues bar and a Gothic Cathedral. The tour, presented by the Hallmark Channel, ran through the end of last year with Clair Global providing exclusive live sound production.

TSO created two separate and complete productions in 2000 to allow the band to cover more ground and they've maintained that format ever since. In 2009, the two tour monitor engineers, Antonio Luna and Chris Hoffmann made the decision to go with the SD7s largely because they had maxed out their D5 consoles. In 2010, both outfits fully upgraded the FOH rigs similarly to a pair of mirrored DiGiCo SD7 systems (comprised of a console with SD-Racks at both FOH and monitor world). The DiGiCo SD7 has been on tour with TSO ever since.

It's interesting, explains current unit monitor engineer, Scott Fraser, that we basically built two identical shows systems for essentially two different shows. While the kits are the same, the way the SD7's are utilized between the two productions is uniquely different.

"In the big picture, having identical consoles for both really kept things simple and provided consistency, from a production and logistics standpoint," said Troy Clair, Clair Global president. "For the operators, it kept the workflow smooth and eliminated compatibility issues."

We started using the SD7 at FOH for the first spring 2010 Beethoven's Last Night tour after having used large analog consoles for the first 11 years, recalled Dave Wittman, FOH engineer for the original TSO production and currently on tour with one of the productions. It was the perfect time to make the switch since we needed a smaller footprint but more inputs as we went back to theatres for the spring tours. I went to Clair Global in Chicago to get some basic orientation with the console. At that time, Michi Tanikawa (current FOH engineer for the second production) was my tech. Once I got the layout to a point where I'd be comfortable, Michi did all the console programming. From then on, we were able to use the saved files from tour to tour with only minimal modifications.

Wittman worked with frontman O'Neill back in the late 70's on a short project. Nearly 17 years later, they hooked up again when Paul needed an engineer to mix the band Savatage's album Dead Winter Dead in 1995. Shortly thereafter, we started recording Paul's new project, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and within a year or two, Paul wanted to tour TSO and asked me to go out and mix the show. I explained that I had never done live sound before, but Paul encouraged me to give it a go. Well, here we are 14 years later and I'm having a blast! I've been working with Paul ever since, recording and mixing all of TSO's studio albums and a live show ever since.

In total, each TSO unit has approximately 65-80 inputs for drums, bass, two guitars, four keyboards, 12 vocal mics, eight live strings, and audience mics with another 15 inputs for spares and utility stuff. I probably haven't scratched the surface using all the features on the SD7 that I could, Wittman laughs. On the other hand, I try to keep things simple and the SD7 does everything we need. I have always had two or three outboard reverbs and a bunch of compressors. Now, having all this onboard is perfect. Flexibility is key with this console; I know it's there, and it more than meets my needs. Additionally, we record each show to Digital Performer and the simplicity of interfacing 80 channels via MADI with two cables and the ability to playback and refine your mix later is a tremendous help. Not to mention, the sonic quality is superb.

A self-professed analog guy who has worked with TSO for the past 5-6 years, Michihiro Michi Tanikawa happily and willingly concedes to the SD7 at FOH for the West Coast unit. I like analog consoles, but we can't bring them on tour, so that's why I stick with the SD7. It makes everything sound more analog with digital convenience. I had been using a D5 for a long time, which made it easy to start using the SD7the faders and layout is set up very much like an analog console unlike some of the other digital console's out there. I still like the analog console sound, but the SD7 always sounds accurate, every day on different gigs and takes up less space. Also, they are great for doing multiple recordings and virtual soundchecks.

I love the console's basic logistics and layout; it's very similar to the D5. And it sounds so great amazing! The SD7 has a more hi-fi' sound especially for TSO. And because our audience ranges from young children to adults, we keep the volume comfortable for everyone, while still being a powerful rock show. There are narration parts, too, that must sound clear so everybody can understand what is being said. It's also fun to change the EQ just a little bit and hear how it alters the sound drastically. The only outboard compression I'm using is a Smart C2 compressor to make it a little bit warmer and analog-sounding before I send it to the PA. The band loves the console and the production loves it too.

At monitor world, the configuration for each outfit is a mix of wedges and in-ears: 24 mixes of Sennheiser IEM (8 mixes of 2050 and 16 of G3), two stereo mixes of Clair CM 22 and two mixes of Clair SRM, with the wedges all powered and processed by Clair StakRac with Lab Gruppen PLM20000Q.
LINK: http://www.digico.biz/docs2/latest_news/EFykVAEAupmMVPfljo.shtml...
See more stories from digico

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

06/09/2026

Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Germany with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos

June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...

04/08/2026

Dalet Announces Commercial Availability of Dalia, Bringing Media-Aware Agentic AI to Enterprise Productions

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

04/07/2026

Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in Dolby Cinemas Across Japan, Presented in Dolby Atmos and Dolby ...

April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...

17/06/2026

EVS Achieves EcoVadis Gold Medal, Ranking in Top 5% of Companies Globally

EVS has announced it has received the EcoVadis Gold Medal for sustainability performance, ranking among the top 5% of companies globally in the Technology/Mid-S...

17/06/2026

Chyron Releases Weather 2.4 with Updated DataFlow Module

Chyron has released Weather 2.4, an update to its weather suite for broadcasters and meteorologists. The release focuses on enhancements to the DataFlow module,...

17/06/2026

VSiN Launches Best Bets TV, a 24/7 FAST Channel

VSiN, The Sports Betting Network, has announced the launch of Best Bets TV, a free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel. The 24/7 channel is currently avail...

17/06/2026

Snapchat and Team Whistle Launch World Cup Creator Program Across Miami, New York, and Los Angeles

DAZN's Team Whistle and Snap Inc. have announced a creator program centered ...

17/06/2026

LiveU Supporting Broadcast and Public Safety Operations for Summer of Soccer

LiveU is providing video transmission technology for broadcasters, production companies, and public safety agencies across North America's busy Summer of So...

17/06/2026

NATAS Announces Two New Board Members and COO Promotion

The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) has announced that Laurens Grant and Jacob Ullman have joined its Board of Directors. Chief of Staf...

17/06/2026

Akta Brings AI-First Cloud Video Workflows to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure

Akta, the AI-First SaaS video platform for modern broadcast and streaming operations, today announced that its video platform is now generally available on Orac...

17/06/2026

SVG Students to Watch: Nicholas Stafford, Texas Southern University

This recent graduate from Houston found inspiration in technical directing and now eyes a future career in sports production...

17/06/2026

InfoComm 2026: Audio-Technica Brings New Wireless, Networked Audio, and Certified Conferencing Solutions

Audio-Technica (booth C7959) arrives at InfoComm 2026 in Las Vegas with a slate ...

17/06/2026

SNS Positions AI Suite as On-Premise Answer to Video Indexing and Search Demands

SNS has published a guide addressing growing demand for AI-powered video indexing, transcription, facial recognition, and searchable metadata across media libra...

17/06/2026

Providius Announces Providius Direct for Network Troubleshooting on NETGEAR Pro AV Switches

Providius has announced Providius Direct, a workflow for investigating network i...

17/06/2026

NEP Launches NEP Platform Software Orchestration System, Selects Bridge Technologies VB440

NEP Group has announced the commercial availability of NEP Platform, a software ...

17/06/2026

BBright White Paper: SRT vs. RIST for Professional Video Contribution and Distribution

A new white paper examining Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) and Reliable Interne...

17/06/2026

Bango Research: 51% of Gen Z Say Highlights Are Replacing Live Games

New research from subscription bundling platform Bango finds that younger sports fans are increasingly consuming sport through highlights, clips, and social med...

17/06/2026

SMPTE Opens Entire Standards Library to Public at No Cost

SMPTE has announced that its complete Standards catalog is now freely available to the global media technology community, including all published SMPTE Standard...

17/06/2026

MediaKind Completes Merger with Harmonic's Video Business, Creating Independent Video Infrastructure Heavyweight

Harmonic has completed the sale of its Video Business to MediaKind for $145 mill...

17/06/2026

Omaha Productions to Produce 2026 World Series of Poker Main Event Coverage for ESPN

Omaha Productions will produce the 2026 World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vega...

17/06/2026

SoundBridge 3.1.0 now available

New features, changes & bug fixes SoundBridge have just released another update for their remote collaboration-focused DAW - reviewed here in SOS March 2026...

17/06/2026

Fryette launch the Valvulator Mini

Valve-based front end for digital & modelling rigs The latest addition to Fryette's product range delivers a packed-down, pedalboard-friendly version of...

17/06/2026

The Biggest UK Pro Audio Show In 20 Years!

GearExpo UK - 27 June 2026 Sound On Sound are proud to announce GearExpo UK, a major new recording and music technology exhibition in London! This is the bi...

17/06/2026

Genelec introduce the 9402A System Management Device

SAM monitoring line-up gains Dante and AES67 support The latest expansion of Genelec's UNIO monitoring ecosystem introduces a new device that provides D...

17/06/2026

The R&SPR300 portable receiver from Rohde & Schwarz sets new standards in spectrum monitoring

The R&S PR300 portable receiver from Rohde & Schwarz sets new standards in spect...

17/06/2026

Elt Group and Rohde & Schwarz sign a cooperation agreement to explore commercial opportunities in electronic warfare and defense

Elt Group and Rohde & Schwarz sign a cooperation agreement to explore commercial...

17/06/2026

NABLF Graduates Its 2026 Broadcasting Leadership Training Class

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/06/2026

ABC and ESPN Score Most-Watched NBA Finals Since 1998

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/06/2026

Smartly, Roku Bring Social Performance Tools to CTV

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/06/2026

Pliant Technologies Debuts Crewcom Flex at InfoComm 2026

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/06/2026

The Immersive Supervisor Emerges as Hollywood's Next Production Role

The Immersive Supervisor Emerges as Hollywood's Next Production Role Brie Clayton June 17, 2026 0 Comments Above image: On set live immersive revi...

17/06/2026

Vertical Musical Playback Shot with Blackmagic PYXIS 6K

Vertical Musical Playback Shot with Blackmagic PYXIS 6K Brie Clayton June 17, 2026 0 Comments Large format sensor and DaVinci Resolve workflow used fo...

17/06/2026

DAZ 3D Launches New Game-Ready Character Assets Built for Modern Engines and Production Workflows

DAZ 3D Launches New Game-Ready Character Assets Built for Modern Engines and Pro...

17/06/2026

Spectrum Awards $1.1 Million in Digital Education Grants

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/06/2026

XR Sports Alliance Adds New Members

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/06/2026

AIMS Launches Free Online IPMX Training Series

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/06/2026

Kiloview Partners with SFM to Expand AV-over-IP Solutions...

Montr al, Quebec, June 11, 2026 Kiloview, a leading provider of AV-over-IP and NDI -based video transmission solutions, today announced a distribution partner...

17/06/2026

Kiloview Launches U4 IP Video Dock Bringing Professional...

Changsha, China, June 15, 2026 Kiloview officially announced the launch of U4 IP Video Dock, a compact IP video decoder and output dock designed to bring prof...

17/06/2026

Half Year, Half Off! Ivory II Summer Sale is Here

Save 50% on All Ivory II Pianos and Collections Were halfway through the year, and we're cutting prices in half for the Ivory II Summer Sale! For a limite...

17/06/2026

Two in three fans will connect to venue WiFi this World Cup, Sky Business research reveals

Wednesday 17 June 2026 Two in three fans will connect to venue WiFi this World ...

17/06/2026

Visibility builds credibility - the tools you use every day...

Visibility builds credibility - the tools you use every day, now visible on your LinkedIn profile Published on Jun 17, 2026 Categories: Company News, Product ...

17/06/2026

Harmonic Completes Divestiture of Video Business to MediaKind

Transaction Positions Harmonic as a Pure-Play Broadband Company SAN JOSE, Calif. - June 17, 2026 - Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ: HLIT), the worldwide leader in virtual...

17/06/2026

FOX Advertising To Launch Industry's First End-to-End Agentic Advertising Platform, Powered by FOX AdStudio

FOX Advertising To Launch Industry's First End-to-End Agentic Advertising Pl...

17/06/2026

Building resilience in an era of compounding threats

How SGN is future-proofing critical national infrastructure with Arqiva Managed Connectivity. When disruption becomes the norm As Storm Eunice tore across the ...

17/06/2026

Good Vibrations hit Dublin and Limerick as RT Concert Orchestra plays the music of the Beach Boys

The RT Concert Orchestra will bring the timeless music of The Beach Boys to aud...

17/06/2026

June 16, 2026

Calibr-Skaggs awarded $5.1M by NIH to develop long-acting hepatitis B virus therapy A new program aims to replace a daily HBV drug with once-monthly or even qua...

16/06/2026

Thomson launches new learning App

Thomson's highly regarded expert-led online learning courses are now easier to access on the go via our new App. Available now on Google Play Store, the J...

16/06/2026

Neumann MT 48 Receives Major Firmware 2.0 Update

Neumann.Berlin has released firmware version 2.0 for the MT 48 audio interface, adding plugin compatibility, expanded Dante networking options, broadcast encode...

16/06/2026

TVNewsCheck Opens Nominations for 2027 Women in Technology Awards

TVNewsCheck has announced that nominations are now open for its 2027 Women in Technology Awards, to be presented at NAB Show 2027 on Tuesday, April 6 in the Med...